"This lawlessness does not remain abroad.

"This lawlessness does not remain abroad. The lawlessness of the United States, when it goes to war and opposes other governments, also threatens the rights of Americans. And this is going to happen in a very, I think, direct way here, because the Trump administration is so clearly looking for pretext to violate the rule of law even more in the United States."

~ Peter Beinart

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress
/1

https://peterbeinart.substack.com/p/maduro-abducted

"Although it has been clear for a while now that major changes — even, potentially, constitutional changes — will be needed to move America beyond this moment, Trump’s actions over this weekend, building on the lawless boat-strike murders, create a global, moral imperative to do so."

~ Chris Geidner

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress
/2

https://www.lawdork.com/p/venezuela-maduro-trump-lawlessness-america

"The lawless attack sends a message to Russia and China that they can engage in similar lawless activity. It also sends a message to our allies that the US cannot be trusted and is an aggressor nation.

Finally, the lesson that we should take from the above is that we must continue to resist Trump’s lawlessness at every turn."

~ Robert B. Hubbell

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress #Russia #China
/3

https://roberthubbell.substack.com/p/trumps-illegal-petro-war-on-venezuela

"It is long past time that Congress gave real teeth to its constitutional power to declare war. As with so many things, Trump didn’t invent a bloated, power-grabbing presidency, but he has brought it to its inevitable conclusion, the very thing most feared by the Founders: A madman able to plunge the country into war on a whim."

~ Andy Craig

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress
/4

https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/trumps-bogus-rationale-for-invading

"We suspect Mr. Trump has refused to seek congressional approval for his actions partly because he knows that even some Republicans in Congress are deeply skeptical of the direction in which he is leading this country."

~ New York Times

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress
/5

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/opinion/venezuela-attack-trump-us.html

"The operation was conducted without an Authorization for Use of Military Force, despite months of visible military preparations that prompted repeated calls for legislative oversight. Secretary of State Rubio has argued that congressional involvement risked operational leaks. That justification is thin."

~ Alexander Vindmann

#Trump #Venezuela #lawlessness #Congress
/6

https://www.avindman.com/p/venezuela-after-the-capture-of-maduro

Heather Cox Richardson provides background to the invasion of Venezuela:

1. DOJ ignored the 19 December deadline to release the Epstein files, and law required it to written justification for any material in the files by January 3, the day Trump invaded Venezuela.

2. What has trickled out from the Epstein files so far is already damning for Trump.

#Trump #Venezuela #Epstein #DOJ #Congress #JackSmith #NationalGuard
/7

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-3-2026

3. Due to court rulings, Trump has been forced to remove National Guard troops from Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland.

4. Jack Smith's damning testimony was released on New Year's Eve.

"It is against this backdrop that the Trump administration launched a strike against Venezuela in the early hours of Saturday, January 3."

#Trump #Venezuela #Epstein #DOJ #Congress #JackSmith #NationalGuard
/8